Training a rescued dog, please help!

vidlaura

Guest

So, we adopted a Beagle/Pointer mix from a shelter. They think she is about 1. She goes to the bathroom when she wants to. In other-words she will go in the house if she feels like it. She gives no warnings that she needs to go, and when we take her out it takes a good 15 minutes of being outside before she will go. Also, if we take her out and 15-20min later she doesnt do anything and we take her back inside, we will find that she sometimes goes inside within 30min to an hour since she was last outside. We are at a loss for what we do. We have another dog that is trained and have taken them both out at the same time, to see if she would follow his lead, but she doesnt. I bought those "wee wee" pads the first day we had her, and she ripped them up. Any suggestions woulld be greatly appreciated.

Experienced Member

Maybe she's punishing you for making her wear "wee wee pads"? (Note to self: change career to marketing dog-related products.)

If I remember rightly, you've had this dog for a couple of weeks now? That being the case, again, it's not that unusual, and not always indicative of the dog's long-term behaviour, so the first thing I will say is relax. I've certainly adopted a dog before that has been this way for a few weeks while she settled in and then she just stopped. And she was the only dog in the house. I wonder if your dog is spending time marking against your other dog's scent? No idea if that is the case, just throwing out thoughts...

I don't advocate the newspaper method, and so, for me, you are pretty much doing all that you can do already.

Make sure that the dog gets frequent opportunities to relieve itself outside.

Watch very very carefully, what your dog does before it toilets. There will be clues, regardless of how small they might be.

If it's possible, (no idea of the weather in your area) leave the door open as much as is possible, so that the dog spends more time outdoors.

I don't find it unusual that she spends upto fifteen minutes to go when you let her out. Your property is still quite new to her, and so there will be lots to sniff and explore. And yes, this can often be a higher priority than going to the toilet, for a young dog.

Sometimes, it can be as simple as timing. After nine months, I pretty much know now when my dog will need to go out: first thing in the morning, mid morning, after we return from our lunchtime walk, around 19:00 and then just before bed. These times work best for when she eats (and therefore drinks the most). If I let her out at other times, I too would be waiting an age.

I'm pretty sure that most of your issues are just "new dog" issues, and that it'll all come good in the end.

At that age, the dog shouldn't really need to be toileting too much. Is she toileting excessively, would you say? if so, has she been checked over by a vet, just to rule out any potential physical issues.

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vidlaura

Guest

The wee wee pads we got her are the ones that you put on the floor to absorb anything she does. I would never put a pad on a dog like a diaper. lol.

I hope your right that she will adapt. She doesnt go much, like yesterday she went in our dining room, but very little. I then took her outside for a good 10-15min and she did nothing. Then a few hours later I took her out again and she went after about 15min. The shelter had her up to date on shots, and their vet gave her a clean bill of health.

New Member

Do you have a crate? It might be useful. The general method is:
Take the dog out to toilet for a set amount of time.
If it doesn't toilet, put him in his crate.
20 minutes later, take him outside again and wait for your set amount of time.
If he doesn't toilet, repeat.
If he does toilet, obviously, lavish praise, followed by 30minutes+ of 'free time' with everyone in the house.
Then take the dog out, and if he doesn't toilet, return to crate.

Shelter dogs, I think, get a bit confused about where they toilet. At the shelter, most shelters, they exclusively eliminate on cement. When they go to a new home, most homes don't want them to go on the cement, or there is no cement like they're used to!

Good luck.

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vidlaura

Guest

Yes we actually do have a crate. I will give that a try. So far she has not gone to the bathroom once while in the crate. I'm sure she is confused since she left the shelter. The people at the shelter told me that they did not know the history on this dog. All they know is that they rescued her from a kill shelter in the south.

New Member

You've got to give her a chance, two or three weeks in a new home is nothing!

Go right back to basics: praise her and give her a treat when she does it outside, ignore and clean up if she does it indoors. Take her out every hour or so, and always after playing, sleeping, eating etc.

The whole rehoming process is hugely upsetting for a dog and even a previously house trained dog can temporarily loose their house training.

Just give her time and keep working with her. :msngrin:

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vidlaura

Guest

Thanks Everyone for all the advice. We tried putting her in the crate if she didnt go when we took her out. Then taking her out an hour later and when she finally does her business outside then she doesnt go back in the crate. I think our dog caught on.